


A Man Made of Stone (Deleted Scene)

by RamblesandDragons



Series: Monster Falls [2]
Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Deleted Scenes, magical transformations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-18
Updated: 2020-05-18
Packaged: 2021-03-03 03:22:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24247984
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RamblesandDragons/pseuds/RamblesandDragons
Summary: Shermie goes poking around Ford's lab to interesting results.
Relationships: Ford Pines & Sherman "Shermie" Pines & Stan Pines
Series: Monster Falls [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1750264
Comments: 9
Kudos: 59





	A Man Made of Stone (Deleted Scene)

**Author's Note:**

> I have more thoughts as to why I didn't go down this path in the story in the bottom notes.  
> (This would have happened in Chapter 8 “What Happened To You?”) 
> 
> I ALSO HAVE AN AMAZING BETA NOW!  
> [Thank You Alverrann!](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Alverrann/pseuds/Alverrann)

Shermie gently put the rift back down and took a wide step away from it. He had come down here for answers, and he’d _gotten_ them alright. The answers weren’t supposed to be abuse, mental torture, attempted murder, and the end of the world though. He had more questions but maybe the answers would come in time; in any case, he wouldn’t push his little brothers anymore. Besides, he had done his job, they were talking to each other now instead of yelling. Stan was coming up with more creative ways to insult this Bill, and Ford was smiling at them. 

“We can put him in a chip bag and seal him in with a chip clip!” 

Shermie chuckled as the two of them kept on going. Wanting to put some distance between himself the literal end of the world he started wandering around the lab. It was kind of a mess. There were pieces of scrap metal here and there, frayed wires sticking out of places, and a few heavy machines that had fallen sideways. Ford had always been a little messy, but this seemed a bit much even for him. It almost looked like a bomb had gone off in here. Shermie’s limits for what he could believe had been expanding all day, and continued to stretch further and further as he listened his _gargoyle_ brother tell his _sphinx_ brother where a dream demon could stick his stupid top hat. 

Peeking around the corner, the old man found what was hidden behind the tarp. The metal skeleton of a large machine lay barren in front of him. He could only guess this was the so-called portal. It must have been huge before … whatever had happened here. Spread out in the room were more pieces of scrap metal, and the feeling that he was standing in the wake of an explosion intensified. It also looked like Ford was using this as a spare place for mixing potions. Well, there was probably a more scientific way of putting it, but it sure as hell looked like potion brewing. He wandered closer to the supposed portal out of curiosity. 

“Sherman, get away from there!” 

Ford’s voice came out as a roar. It was filled with anger and fear and enough force to startle the old man into tumbling back. He tripped backwards and over a piece of scrap metal. Catching himself on the worktable behind him, Shermie managed to avoid cracking his skull on something, but he couldn’t stop the contents of the table from spilling over and onto him. 

“Ford! Don’t scare me like that!” 

His brothers were at his side in an instant and pulled him back up. 

“Shermie, it’s dangerous in here!” 

“Look I’m old but I’m not stupid, Ford!” 

There was a growing frustration in his little brother; he could see it. Meanwhile, Stan had a worried look on his face and was holding his hands close to his chest. For a moment Stan looked like he was a million miles away from there, in some other place or time. 

That was never a good sign. 

Shermie wished he could know what was going on in his brother’s head, but before he could ask, Stan seemed to come back to the present. “Ford … we probably need to get him cleaned up. He didn’t fall into something that will make his skin melt off or somethin’, right?” 

“My what do _what_?” 

“No, no I don’t keep things like that out in the open. I’m not incompetent. He just fell into some water- ... oh no.” 

So, his brother had stuff that could melt skin around here? Nice to know. Shermie hoped the kids didn’t come down here that much. It took him a moment to notice that the twins had suddenly gone silent and he _knew_ that was a bad sign. Why were his brothers looking at the damp spot on his arm and shoulder like it was going to eat at his skin if it was just water? 

“It’s just water, right?” He managed to finally ask aloud. 

“No. The curse that changed us stems from a magical source of water found in the woods; you fell into my samples of it.” 

“Okay, so I got a little on me. That can’t be enough to change me, right?” 

Ford and Stan gave each other a look and that was all the answer he needed. Ford pushed up his glasses and ran to grab his journal. Stan found a chair and pretty much pushed Shermie into it. 

“The water is surprisingly potent. It works faster if it comes into contact with the skin.” Ford took his brother’s arm and started to stare intensely at it. Shermie jerked it out of his grasp. 

“I’m not a test subject!” Shermie was not panicking. Not even a little bit. 

“Actually, I’m afraid you are. This will be the first time I get to observe a change besides my own. It could lead to vital data to help you eventually change back.” Ford spoke without missing a beat. 

“Stand back a little, Poindexter, you’re making him stress more.” Stan gently guided Ford back a few feet. 

“I’m about to turn into a monster, I don’t think I can stress out more!” Okay maybe he _was_ panicking a little bit. 

The seconds stretched into minutes. Both of his brothers were staring at him intently, making Shermie sweat more. What would he turn into? What would it be like? Could he just get it _over_ with already? 

“Will it hurt?” He said after a long moment of silence. He hated how his voice wavered like he was a little kid. 

“Eh, not too bad. It won't be a walk in the park but it won't kill ya, either. My change wasn’t so bad; the wings hurt the most, but honestly I’ve been...” Stan paused and coughed. “You’ll be fine, Sherm. We’ll be right here for you.” 

The unspoken “I’ve been through worse” sat between the two of them. He had come down here to comfort his brothers and they were the ones taking care of him. It was frustrating. He was really kicking himself for not being there for them when they needed him. Having no idea how magic worked, he just hoped that whatever it was would turn him into something useful. Lost in his thoughts it took him a moment to realize that his skin where the water had touched was getting itchy. 

Very, _very_ itchy. 

“Hey, am I supposed to feel like I’m getting chicken pox again?” 

“Itching? Stan did you itch?” 

“No, my skin just felt really dry. Sherm, I think you need to take off your shoes or you might be losing a pair.” 

“Hmm. Mabel said she was itchy. Perhaps ...” 

Shermie didn’t listen to the rest of Ford’s pondering, he tossed off his shoes right as pain hit him in the back. He doubled over in the chair with a gasp. Stan and Ford both looked on helplessly. The itching grew worse and finally forcing his eyes open he pulled up the sleeve to find scales forming on his skin. Once they started it spread like wildfire over the rest of his body. Red sparkling scales bloomed on his arms and legs. His socks tore as black claws grew on his feet and then his hands. The pain in his back made him arch in discomfort and he landed on his knees on the floor. Somehow, he registered the sound of his shirt tearing. Sinus pressure was next in the absurd symptoms as the front of his face changed; his teeth grew with an ache in his mouth. Finally, the itching started to die and with a final pain in his lower back and a tear of clothing the change stopped. 

Shermie found himself on the floor panting heavily. His body felt too big and heavy to be his own. “Ughhhhhhhh, what the actual _hell_?” 

“Incredible,” Ford whispered. 

“You okay, Sherm?” 

Shermie made to stand and Stan gripped him under one arm while Ford grabbed the other. They went to put him in the chair, but he found he didn’t fit quite right. 

“You need to adjust your wings...” Stan’s hand brushed against a part of Shermie’s body that not had not been there a few moments ago. It was such a strange feeling. 

“W-Wings? I have _wings?”_

The twins chuckled. “Seems to be a family trait,” Ford said as he fluttered his own. “Stay here, I have an idea.” 

Ford ran to one of the piles of scrap metal and grabbed a large piece. When had his nerdy little brother gotten so strong? Was that a sphinx thing? Was _he_ that strong now? The scrap metal was placed in front of Shermie and given a quick wipe with Ford’s sleeve. In the metal the old man could see what he become. The red scales covered his body. His face had elongated into a bit of a snout with fangs just poking out of the lips. His head had small horns poking out of it and leathery wings twitched on his back. He turned to get a better view of the wings and along his spine there were black spikes. 

There was also a tail. 

He had a flipping tail! 

“HOLY COW, I’M A DRAGON!” 

“Huh. I guess you called it, Ford.” 

“Called it? Why a dragon? What does it mean? Can I breathe fire now?” He took a deep breath. 

“No!” Both twins clamped onto his new snout to stop him. 

“Trust me, Sherm, ya want to take this slow,” Stan grumbled. 

“I have a thought. Dragons are often depicted as evil ...” 

“I’m not evil!” 

“If you’d let me finish...dragons are often depicted as evil, but they are also seen as powerful and wise. In many cultures they are protectors and impart wisdom and knowledge. As the current patriarch of the family - and probably the wisest of the three of us - I think this is a fitting change for you.” 

“Did you just call me the wisest, Ford? I’ve done some dumb shit in my life.” 

“Yeah, but you also didn’t join a cartel.” 

“Or almost bring about the end of the world...” 

“Okay when you two put it like that, I guess.” 

_Hear that Anne? I’m wise._

The dragon tried to rise to his feet and the blood rush almost made him fall over. He had gained some height and weight and- well, a lot of other things. His legs felt like they were filled with sand. 

“Okay, let’s help you get upstairs before you hurt yourself. Take a tip from me, just sleep on your stomach,” Stan said. 

With both of his brothers at his side he was able to wobble to the elevator. As they reached the gift shop Shermie had to wiggle out of the secret door. Getting used to this was going to be annoying. He was tired as hell and just wanted to hit the bed, hoping that in the morning this would all be a dream, but there was something he needed to do first. 

“So, who wants to help me go tell the family?” 

Mabel’s squeal of delight upon seeing her grandfather could probably be heard clear across the whole valley that night. 

**Author's Note:**

> (So, the idea of turning Shermie into a monster came and went. In the end I decided against it because of a few reasons. The first being I wanted Shermie to play the straight man to all the ridiculousness. He’s constantly in a state of “Welp this might as well be a thing at least my brothers are alive, and my grandkids are okay, so I’ll roll with it.” and that’s a lot of fun to write. The second reason is this story was supposed to mostly focus on Stan and Ford, their relationship, and how fixing it was the journey they needed to go through. Well Ford needed to go on that journey, Stan needed to work on his self-worth. The third is that the catalyst for his change back to human would be continuing to heal from the grief of losing his wife. That’s just so damn sad and a lot to balance with everything else going on. Plus, in my head I think Shermie still misses her terribly but is already on his way to dealing with that grief in a positive way. I wrote half of this scene before I firmly chose not to go with this idea. So, enjoy a cleaned-up version! )


End file.
